The decrease in SG&A dollars this year was primarily due to lower store
controllable expenses and advertising, which were offset by slightly higher incentive compensation.
The company had selling, general, and administrative expenses of $870 million for the quarter versus $880 million for Q2 2018, which it said was based on lower store
controllable expenses and advertising but offset by a slightly higher incentive compensation.
So-called
controllable expenses -- costs that are within USPS' operating control -- rose to $1.1 billion, compared with $889 million for the same quarter last year.
When normalized for
controllable expenses (ex-security) and new hotel expenses not recorded in the pcp, operating expenditure only increased by 2.5%, reflecting investment in product being offset by cost savings.
Greystar said it purchased this property at a discount to replacement cost, and plans to reduce
controllable expenses and refresh the interiors, allowing the company to maximise the property's potential and capitalise on a potential supply shortfall in the area through 2020.
* Identification of operations-related
controllable expensesTravel and entertainment (T&E) expenses, behind salaries and benefits, are the second largest category of
controllable expenses.
"It was critical for us to reduce one of our largest
controllable expenses," said Andy Raab, vice president real estate at SVT, LLC, which owns and operates Strack & Van Til.
They suggest savings opportunities on MRO, paint and floor covering--the largest
controllable expenses at the community level.
"A clear consequence of the financial crisis is that companies in the UAE have become much shrewder and more informed when it comes to
controllable expenses," said Mazin Khoury, chief executive officer of American Express Middle East.
But overall, says Mazin Khoury, CEO of American Express Middle East, "a clear consequence of the financial crisis is that companies in the UAE have become much shrewder and more informed when it comes to
controllable expenses."